


the art of scraping through

by romajstorovic



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: Angst, Angst with no happy ending, M/M, Tuckerreed, tags to be updated
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-07-11
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:02:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25208161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/romajstorovic/pseuds/romajstorovic
Summary: malcolm has a particularly stressful away mission. when he gets back, he's acting different, but in a good way. the crew has no idea what's coming.
Relationships: Malcolm Reed/Charles "Trip" Tucker III
Comments: 13
Kudos: 14





	the art of scraping through

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ScottieIsImpatient](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScottieIsImpatient/gifts).



> scottie tysm for harassing me into actually writing. ly bro

It’s ten minutes before the end of his shift when Malcolm notices the distress call. He passes it to Hoshi to see if she can translate it; Hoshi immediately passes it to T’Pol. “It’s in Vulcan,” she explains.

“It is coming from an I’Chari settlement called Esaline,” T’Pol explains. “The Khalkari, the inhabitants of this particular settlement, are requesting medical aid. Specifically that of the most senior doctor. Their own is injured.”

“That’d be Phlox,” Archer says in response. Malcolm knows full well that Phlox is hibernating, and won’t be functional for at least six days.

“Can we wake him up?” Malcolm asks, knowing the answer will be a resounding “no”. Especially after what happened last time.

“Crewman Cutler has taken up his position for the time being,” T’Pol reminds them all. “She is capable of dealing with the emergency.”

“T’Pol, go and explain the situation to her. Malcolm, I want you to take the shuttle down with her.”

Malcolm is surprised, but acquiesces. Obviously.

“The I’Chari have been violent towards Vulcans in the past,” Archer explains. “I don’t know if all I’Chari are like that, but I’m not taking any chances. Go with her.” Malcolm nods.

Travis offers to take them down, but Archer decides to keep him on the bridge, which means Malcolm would have to pilot the shuttle by himself. It’s not his favourite activity, but he can manage. He thinks. It’d be a damn sight easier if Liz wasn’t so nervous.

“I don’t even know what the medical emergency is,” she frets, brushing her hair out of her face. “They said they just needed one doctor, so it can’t be too overwhelming, but they did request the CMO. I’m nowhere near as skilled as Phlox! What if I can’t help them?”

Malcolm breathes deeply. He’s on edge, but that’s no excuse to snap at her. “You’ll be okay,” he says, in what he hopes is his most calming tone. “You’ve trained for this. You’re a good medic, and you’ve got a good bedside manner. God knows you’ve patched me up enough times.”

“You do have a habit of getting yourself injured,” Liz laughs nervously. “Thank you, Sir. I’m glad to have you.”

Malcolm flushes a little at that. He’s never been one for praise.

Less than a minute later they break through the atmosphere, and Liz is peering out of a window to see what Esaline looks like. “Oh my lord,” she breathes. “Lieutenant, are you looking at this?”

“I _am_ piloting us into it,” he responds, waving off her apology. She’s right about the exclamation, though: this planet is, perhaps, the most beautiful place he’s ever seen.

Huge swathes of tall, willowy trees cut across the land, arranged in a striped pattern which reminds him, strangely, of zebras. The space between each small forest is filled with a mountain, shining a deep, deep red in the early morning sun. There are pools of water, each with a gentle greyish tinge to it. It reminds Malcolm of the Amazon Rainforest, but also of the rainbow mountains in Peru. The Ausangate Mountains, if he remembers correctly.

“Holy shit,” Liz says, and Malcolm doesn’t even have the heart to tell her off.

-x-

The landing is somewhat turbulent, Malcolm will admit, but neither he nor Liz are injured so he counts it as a win. They’re directed into a small settlement, with squat houses made of wood and what Malcolm thinks is clear quartz. The windows are glass, and he can see the whole street from them. He keeps his back straight, his eyes and ears open, and his hand near his phase pistol. He doesn’t like this place.

They’re finally approached by one of the Khalkari. They are small, around Hoshi’s height, with scaled wings on their arms. They have three fingers on each hand, and their arms almost touch the floor. Their skin is a brilliant azure, and Malcolm finds himself staring for a little longer than is necessary. He introduces himself and prays the universal translator is working.

“I am Yasha,” they say. “Are you the physicians?”

Malcolm nods. “She is, I’m not.” Yasha acknowledges this and turns around, leading them into the town.

Malcolm calms down somewhat when he and Liz are led into one of the houses. The Khalkari seem trustworthy enough – at least, trustworthy enough not to kill him. Yasha introduces them to another Khalkari, Malenka, who looks the same as them but with a longer neck.

“I need the physician to come alone,” Malenka announces. “I am sorry, but we cannot allow many people into Chasnari’s room. It would not be safe.”

“Safe? What’s happening? Is Chas- Chasnari violent?” Malcolm asks, stepping forward. He stumbles over the name, but ignores it.

“We cannot deal with the infections you may bring,” Malenka says. They turn to Liz. “You are the physician, yes? With me.” They lead Liz out of the room and Malcolm folds his arms. He looks to Yasha, but they’ve gone. He’s alone.

-x-

Liz returns a few minutes later, looking grim. “It’s not good,” she asks, in response to Malcolm’s look. “We’re looking at hours here. Maybe a couple of days. They have an infection, a broken bone, and some nasty looking cuts. I have no idea what hit them, and nobody else seems to know either. I’m not sure if this medkit will be enough.”

Malcolm rubs his face. “I can call the Enterprise and ask them to beam some things down,” he offers. “Unless whatshisface is stable enough to be taken back on the shuttle.”

Liz shakes her head. “Honestly, Sir, it’s a wonder they’re still alive. Can you get me some things?”

Malcolm nods, and makes a note of all the equipment Liz requests. “Do not forget the needle,” Liz warns. “I specifically need the curved one.”

“Understood, Crewman,” Malcolm says. “You have your communicator if you need me. I’ll be as quick as I can, and I’m only going to the shuttle.”

“I’ll be fine, Sir,” Liz reassures. “I promise.” Malcolm believes her.

Malenka steps out of the room Malcolm presumes Chasnari is in. “Are you ready?” They ask Liz. She explains about Malcolm going to get more medical supplies, and that they could be here for a while.

“In that case,” Malenka says slowly, “I shall send Yasha to get food for you. The Vulcans like our soup. It has a vegetable in it which they say is similar to your human yam.” Malcolm isn’t the biggest fan of yams, but yam soup is better than nothing.

“Do you need anything else?” He asks Liz. She shakes her head.

“Look after yourself, Lieutenant.”

“Same to you, Crewman.”

-x-

The trek back to the shuttle is about half a mile, but it’s at least thirty degrees Celsius outside and Malcolm finds himself sweating. “Leicester boys were not made for this,” he mutters to himself. He grabs a canteen of water and takes a swig, waiting a few minutes until he remembers that the Khalkari is dying. He swears, then hits the communicator button. “Reed to Enterprise.”

“Archer here. What’s wrong?”

“The patient is worse than anticipated. I have a list of equipment Crewman Cutler needs from medical. Can you send it down?”

“Tell us what you need.”

Malcolm rattles off the list. “She specified the curved needles,” he adds. “She said that was very important. And the sterile thread, too.”

“We’re on it, Lieutenant,” Archer promises. “We’ll transport it directly into the cargo bay.”

“Absolutely, Sir. Thank you.”

“No problem. Archer out.”

It takes nearly ten minutes for the supplies to come through to the cargo bay. Malcolm’s caught his breath, and he’s not sweating quite as badly. What arrives is two small boxes, each barely the length of his forearm. He unzips his uniform, takes one in each hand, and begins the arduous walk back to the town.

Malcolm walks fast, mostly concentrating on navigating the rocky terrain, but he keeps an eye on the forestry as he does so. Trees. Wind. A lone bird which reminds him of a magpie. One of his friends back in primary school always used to salute them. He continues walking.

The village comes into sight and he’s spurred on by the vision of his destination. The thought of the yam soup does, on some level, contribute to his speed – but Malcolm would never admit that. Embarrassingly enough, he stumbles once or twice, grateful that nobody is around to see him. He’s worried he’s got the wrong house when a Khalkari he doesn’t recognise is the one to open the door.

“I’m looking for Yasha?” He asks, unsure. The Khalkari brightens.

“You are the guard!” They say, eyes crinkling in delight. “We’ve been waiting for you. Yasha is finishing your soup.”

“I have medical supplies,” Malcolm says, but the Khalkari has already turned around. They didn’t even wait for him to follow.

He knocks on the door to Chasnari’s room and waits for Liz’s shout before he enters. The sight is not a pretty one. Chasnari is almost grey, struggling to breathe, and their skin is saggy and it hangs off their frame. Their chest is exposed, and Malcolm sees a dark blue patch twisting its way down their torso. He immediately recognises it as sepsis. Blood poisoning. That’s not good.

“Will the antibiotics be enough?” He asks quietly, doubtfully. Liz shakes her head.

“I’m not sure,” she replies, “but it’s the best I can do.”

“How can I help?” Malcolm kneels beside her, feet tucked against the floor.

“Sepsis first,” Liz says firmly. “We have antibiotics, right? Let me see what you’ve brought. Do you have any Ceftriaxone?”

-x-

Four painful hours later, Malcolm lies on his back on the floor. Liz slumps, exhausted. “How are they, Crewman?”

There’s a few seconds of silence as Liz gathers herself together. “They’ll live, I think,” she says. “Thank you for helping me, Sir, even though Malenka said you weren’t allowed.”

Malcolm groans. He’d forgotten about that. “I’ll get out before they come back, then. I wouldn’t want to upset any of them.”

“Too late,” comes Malenka’s disapproving voice. Malcolm sits upright, then crouches, ready to run if he needs to. “But you helped save their life. Stand outside and we will speak no more of this. Your food is ready, we can take over from here. You too,” they say to Liz. “Your work here is done.”

Slowly, Liz shuffles out of the room, thanking Malcolm for holding the door open for her. Yasha is there to greet them. They don’t meet Malcolm’s eyes. They only speak to Liz, and give her the first bowl of soup. They gesture for her to try it. Her eyes widen.

“This is so good,” she smiles. “What’s in it?”

“We have a vegetable similar to your yam,” Yasha explains. “That is the primary ingredient. We have other herbs in it.”

Liz looks at Malcolm. “I don’t taste any nuts or anything,” she says, “so I think you’re alright to eat it, Sir. I have an epi pen if you need it.”

“How do you – right, doctor. Of course.” Malcolm’s getting slow. He’s last to get the soup, and his is mainly dregs. The texture isn’t the nicest, but the taste itself is amazing. He doesn’t complain, and eats it fairly rapidly.

When they’re done, Liz looks at him. He raises an eyebrow and cocks his head towards her, gesturing to her that she should be the one to talk. She clears her throat. “Thank you for the food and the hospitality,” she says, nervous. “Would you like us to stay and look after Chasnari for longer?”

Malenka thinks over the offer. “No,” they say eventually. “Your help has been most appreciated, physician. We will keep giving them your medicine until they awaken.”

“Until the sepsis has completely gone,” Liz corrects. “If you stop too early it can come back.” Malenka nods slowly.

“Yasha and I will walk you to the edge of the town. We wish you safe travels. Come.”

The Khalkari from earlier takes the bowls from Liz and Malcolm and Malenka stands. Malcolm gestures for Liz to walk in front of him so that he can protect her back if the need arises. Malenka and Yasha stop at the town’s edge.

“Thank you,” Liz says again. “We really do appreciate your hospitality.”

“It is no matter,” Malenka says dismissively. “It is the least we can do after you saved Chasnari’s life.”

Malcolm scans their surroundings as he and Liz walk back to the shuttle. The magpie-type bird from earlier is back – with two others. They seem to stare right at him. He does his best to ignore them.

They step into the shuttle and take off. Malcolm comms the Enterprise, letting them know the pair will be back soon. The affirmation takes a little longer than normal, and the shuttle bay doors don’t fully open, so he scrapes the side of the shuttle. Engineering isn’t going to like him for that.

“You alright, Sir?” Liz asks at the jolt.

“I’m fine, Crewman,” he snaps, and she stops talking to him. She gets off the shuttle rather rapidly after that. _You stupid bastard, Malcolm,_ he chides himself. _She’s just being nice._

Debriefing takes forever. Malcolm’s stressed, which makes Archer stressed, which makes Malcolm more stressed. He has to force himself to calm down so as not to yell at his captain.

“I don’t _know_ , Sir. My presence there seemed to upset them. As soon as Crewman Cutler and I were done, we were all but forcibly escorted out.”

Archer breathes in deeply, obviously snappish too. “Okay. Fine. Go to bed, and we can talk this over in the morning when neither of us are quite as pissed off.”

 _I’m not pissed._ “Yes, Sir.”

“That means you go to sleep, Lieutenant.”

 _I’m a little pissed._ “Understood, Sir.” 

“Good. Make sure you do sleep. Dismissed, Lieutenant.”

 _Change of plans. I’m pissed._ “Yes, Sir.” Malcolm turns smartly on his heel and hits his elbow on the door on the way out. He curses. His head is beginning to hurt, and his mood is foul.

He looks at the time on his padd and groans. It’s way too early to go to bed, but he knows if he goes to the mess someone will try to talk to him and he _will_ cuss them out. He’s in one of those moods. He also needs to find Crewman Cutler and apologise to her at some point.

He rubs his eyes and decides to go back to his quarters. Sleep should sort him right out.


End file.
